Conclusion of Rage
by Nalana
Summary: After the final battle, a careless statement makes Remus snap. When the fine line between man and monster is broken, what side wins? WARNING. Rated R for Graphic Violence. It also contains Character Deaths.


Disclaimer: I don't own them, so please don't sue.

A/N: Please note that this is not how I /normally/ am. I was in a very bad mood when this was composed. The deaths of the characters were given as they popped into my head. It doesn't mean I hate one character or like one better. Thanks and...oh...

THIS IS RATED R FOR A REASON! TURN BACK NOW IF YOU DON'T LIKE GRAPHIC VIOLENCE/MULTIPLE CHARACTER DEATH!

Edited for grammar by author 01/03/07

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My pad passes over the blaze like it's nothing. The flames cook my palm, cauterizing the marks left from my rampage. Blistering my flesh and sinking into my soul the orange and yellow cluster raises the temperature of the room to boiling. Cloudy tears evaporate before leaving the ducts in my eyes.

Around me crimson has been splattered. Empty shells are scattered along this gaping field. I glance down at one body in particular. My heart wrenches, threatening to pop out. What have I done?

My greatest enemy, the moon, is only half filled. It shouldn't hold sway over me. Yet my bones scream as they crack in transformation.

_Stop. Stop_

I watch in agony as digits form back into fingers. My tongue lolls. My nostrils flare with the overwhelming copper scent that basks the ground. Teeth grit together as the dark muzzle crunches back, thrusts up, and becomes a humanoid jaw and nose. Extended vertebrate pop loudly as they recline, a ragged tail disappearing.

As fur vanishes my skin is available to the whipping wind. I recoil, my arm flying up to shelter my bare face. Slick liquid cools and boils again and again, shocking my senses.

The betraying breeze swirls the bonfire around me, drawing it closer. It feeds on the carcasses that litter the ground. Disgust fills my gut where hunger once lingered. My insides lurch and reject the human flesh that had started to digest. It no longer tastes pleasant. The 'dressing' has a sour odor.

_Why? Why me_

Mind tottering between reality and memory, I stumble to my feet only to be greeted with another wave of reminiscence. I was alone, completely alone. I have no one else to blame but myself. After all it was my lips that muttered Avanda Kedavara in Peter's direction. I was the one who held Harry's tattered body as he muttered his final curse that brought the Dark Lord down with him. I was the one who closed the great Dumbledore's eyelids.

_ Remus... Listen to me... _

That must have been when I blacked out. I can't remember much. What I do is only flashes. Hermione's chocolate eyes clouded with tears. Ron's flared with anger. Mrs. Weasley slapping me. All these memories cluttered together between the fog. In this mist is where it had started.

_ Murder. Failure. You're not._

Clarity came with one sentence. That jumble of words brought my own distraction. I had never expected her to say something of that sort. At the same time I would except nothing other than strength from her.

"He... He can rest." Hermione had choked out as she cradled Voldemort's 'murderer's' body. "At least... At least it's over now." She had whispered.

Words that were meant to justify death were the catalyst.

It was inevitable. My collected manner had been battling with the rage that filled my mind. I had held in so much for the sake of others. Now the kettle was singing. My irises contracted, eyes rolling back into my head. As if luna were in her prime, my body began to alter.

They, most of the Order, were there in the final battle. The remaining alive collected around me and the bodies. Many were injured. Few had functional wands. Still they tried to restrain me as I prematurely shifted into my monster.

_'Hold him down!' _

Primal instincts took over. I was furious, grieving, and starving. A wicked grin spread across my muzzle as I focused in on Hermione. Her traitorous words would mark her as dessert. She had struck my flesh with a bullet of silver even though she didn't know it. She would pay.

With this being the only coherent thought in my head, I mustered up strength in my hind legs and leapt towards the youngest Weasley. Ginny, wandless, shrieked. Ron jumped in front of her. Before words could leave his lips I had his wand in splinters and his fist shattered.

Using my bulk and grip on his flesh, I hurled him towards the ground. With him displaced I snapped my head towards the teen who was now yanking my fur. Her attempts to divert my attention from her brother worked. Instead of continuing on to him my body whirled. When I had Ginny in a wolfish form of body slam I shifted my weight onto her chest to slowly take her breath away.

Others tried to push me off of her. Mrs. Weasley threw every curse at me she could think of. Being in my state repelled most of them. Poor woman. She should have used a forbidden curse. Even with my newest crime she could not bring herself to kill someone. If only she had...

Knowing her daughter was gone the elder woman sent a ring of flame around me. It was a foolish thing to do. Snarling, I pushed through the barrier directly towards her. Grabbing her securely with my jaws I tossed her into the inferno like a rag doll. She had created her own grave.

_'What the hell has gotten into you?' _

"I'LL KILL YOU!" Ron exploded.

Gaining his footing he ran towards me. I could faintly hear Hermione scream her warning.

The Wolf wouldn't let him go easily. Oh no, it saw a challenge. It...I... met his gaze directly before dashing behind him. My jaws found a target and clamped down towards the base of his spine. Ron thrashed, only managing to tear his own flesh away.

I persisted until I heard a convincing snap and the boy collapsed onto the ground. The beast in me still wasn't satisfied. Giddily I felt myself jumping down towards the boy's feet. Clamping onto each I began to dislocate segments of skin, sinew, and bone inch by inch. Some I gobbled down greedily. Other parts I tossed aside. It was a feast complete with the sweet music of the boy as he watched helplessly.

The fire had spread by now cutting off the others from me and my treat. I could hear their screams of protest as Ron's life floated away. Not once, at the time, did I feel remorse.

For the second time that evening I found myself barricaded in by fire. This was irritating. I could see Malfoy and his goons cackling behind them. They had been taken prisoner along with Bellatrix Lestrange. My muscles tensed at their laughing. They were mocking me, degrading me.

Yapping I burst through the fiery wall once more and bolted towards the wide-eyed group. Before I could reach them, I felt a powerful blow to my skull. It sent me twirling to the ground. I gasped, willing myself to sit up.

_FINALLY. _

Severus Snape, the slimy 'saved' Slytherin git himself has socked me. What pissed me off more was that he was saving those twits! He seemed to loom over me, grinning. He felt proud to knock me down. He was finally getting the upper hand. Or, so he thought.

As he leaned over my form to whisper something I straightened up. The basic part of myself laughed loudly as I clawed out each of his eyes. His firm hands clutched unto my scruff, trying to push me off. Like other attempts it only fueled my thirst more. Dear ol' Snivellus was soon on the ground grasping onto the shreds that were once his stomach.

Madness consumed me. The slaughter continued. I destroyed them all one at a time. Malfoy's heir, the elder Weasleys, and the injured McGonagall were the next to fall. Neville, so rest him, tried his best to stop me. Even as I crunched his fingers to oblivion, he was still trying to mutter curses.

Fool.

All the while Bellatrix laughed. She had even managed to pick up a discarded wand and freeze Hermione where she was just as she was locating her own wand that had been misplaced in battle. She WANTS to see them die! My mind, truly my mind, screeched. My massacre took purpose.

"YOU!" Somehow, my human vocal skills had remained. "You just want them dead so you can LIVE! DAMN YOU!"

Fury bubbled through my veins. Adrenaline coursed through my brain as I rammed into the witch. She hadn't expected me to come at her in such a direct manner. Thanks to this I was able to bring the one death I wanted to.

My claws dug deeply into her ankles. As she stumbled back she lost the wand she had fought for. My timing was off. I found myself squirming from under her body, giving her a chance to rip off half my ear with her nails.

I howled in pain before returning the favor with my teeth. Her death was slow. I made sure of that. Several puncture wounds to the arms, legs, throat, stomach, and chest. She would bleed to death.

"...You were the one who killed him." My voice was raspy, I was panting.

Her icy eyes stared up at me with a smirk of satisfaction.

"And you couldn't do anything to stop me." She managed to breath out. "I can still see his eyes rolling back in that TH-AHH!" I cut her off by pressing my paw heavily on her windpipe; Tight enough to hurt, loose enough not to crush.

"This is for him..." I croaked the tight muscles in my face flinching. As promised, my claws bared down onto that pretty face of hers; mangling it until it was unrecognizable.

When the bitch joined her precious Lord Voldemort, I turned my attention back to Ms. Granger and the last survivor. Tonks was trying to comfort the young woman as Bella's curse started to wear off. She was looking nervously between me and her patient.

Andromeda's daughter was in no shape to be comforting anyone. She had shattered her leg trying to get to Voldemort before he killed Moody. Behind her tired eyes I could see something click as I drew nearer. I licked my chops as I advanced.

Tonks vanished. Rather, it no longer appeared to be her. Instead Sirius Black sat there in front of Hermione. If I had been in my right mind I would have realized it was only an illusion. But if is not a word I recognize in times like this.

"Remus...Moony..." 'Sirius' whispered to me. "Stop. It's not too late! We know it's not you." A ragged, calloused, hand reached out to cup my jaw.

_ Here, I'm here.. _

To my astonishment the Wolf didn't rip the hand off. Instead, it lowered it's ear and a half and whimpered pitifully. The impersonator looked torn, almost as if the real Sirius had somehow taken over her body.

"Padfoot...Help me..." It whimpered, licking the fake fingers in shame.

I had thought that maybe the terror would subside. Once again, it fooled me.

Just as Tonks-in-disguise pulled me to her, the Wolf came back. It growled deeply within its chest before prodding his open mouth to the left of her central body area. It ripped through tissue and rammed inner bone until it cracked.

"YOU LEFT ME! WHY DID YOU GO! YOU KNEW YOU WOULD DIE!" I screamed as I made my way to the human heart.

I didn't even notice the illusion flickering to form back into the true person.

"DAMN YOU, PADFOOT! YOU PROMISED ME!" I growled as I located the throbbing organ that tried its best to deal with the intrusion.

Hermione tried once more to throw me off. But before she could succeed I had deflated Tonk's heart.

_ Lost. _

"No...No... NO." Ms. Granger looked up at me in terror. I can only imagine how I could have looked looming there.

Hermione was always full of surprises. She didn't even fail now. Instead of throwing herself at me like the others had she just sat there, waiting for her outcome. The Wolf was taken completely aback.

"Remus. I know you're in there somewhere. Please...If you can hear me, just do it quickly." I shook my head in protest and started to force myself to step backwards.

"Please...I don't want to be alone. Don't let me be the only one. Please." She was begging.

In her eyes I saw the same desperation that I had often felt myself. It was the same thing that drove me to this.

Panting slowly, cowardly looking away, I did as she bid. I walked up whimpering. She pat my pelt and whispered that it was alright. She said she didn't blame me. As I snapped her neck back, I sobbed.

How could she, after all that, welcome death? How could she still embrace someone who had demolished all those who she held dear? Why did she chose this exit? Maybe... Maybe she had wanted it all along.

Human now, I stand over her body wondering these same things. The fire was coming close now and I am making no attempt to free myself. I deserve as horrible an end as I had given these poor souls. Even the Wolf should have realized they didn't warrant it - not even Bellatrix.

Through the smoke I see the faces of those whom I had cared for. Some are angry. Some are happy. One sticks out the most. It frowns, cries, and then turns away.

As I feel my skin start to bubble I realize why the individual had been crying. I would not be joining them, my friends. Hermione was right, it was the Wolf who had murdered. But that's what they forget. I am the Wolf.

_Goodbye. _


End file.
